Meals at CGEE House

Jumping in with both feet...

Sitting here at the kitchen table in CGEE (Center for Global Education and Experience) house in Windhoek, Namibia while half a dozen students do their homework and have great conversation. (I'm learning a lot about social media!)

So I asked them how detailed they thought we should be in this blog. Because the range was from "list the lunch menu" to "let them know we're all still alive", we came up with a creative solution.  We will offer a "just the facts" shorter version, and a "lunch menu" longer version. (Also tells me a little about the differences in your parenting styles. 😉)

Here's the quick and dirty (short) version:

Got to St. Peter's in Johannesburg and settled in - qaint retreat center

Lunch at Robbie's Place - delicious

Hector Pieterson and The Apartheid Museums - amazing and sobering.

Processing and dinner - awesome

Most of us were exhausted and asleep by 8 or 9 our time because...

Up and loading the vans for our 6:30 a.m. departure to the airport

Arrived in Windhoek CGEE House around 1:00 and had lunch

Short orientation and tour of the city from the President's residence to the informal settlements

Back to the house for dinner, homework, showers, relaxing, reading, and visiting.

And now for details and commentary:

So after getting cleaned up and settled into our digs Wednesday around noon, we headed to Robbie's 

Place for a wonderful buffet style authentic South African meal consisting of grilled chicken, beowors (South African sausage - similar to brats), stewed beef, dombolo (steamed bread), rice, pap (thick mealie-meal porridge-like), butternut squash, curried carrots, mixed steamed veggies, potato salad, colorful coleslaw, and a Greek cucumber salad. For dessert we had mixed canned fruit with vanilla custard. This was all served in Robbie's home which he turned into a B&B and now restaurant for groups such as ours. There was something for everything and the meal received rave reviews.

From there we stopped briefly at the Hector Pieterson Museum. If you don't recognize the name, you may be familiar with the famous picture - of 13 year-old Hector being frantically carried by a man (a stranger) running with a limp child in his arms having scooped him up after he (Hector) had been shot by the police. Hector's 16 year-old sister, is chasing next to the man. 

We heard this tragic story retold by that 16 year-old sister, Antoinette Sithole, now 55. Hector was the first of 566 people killed that day - in June of 1976 - during the Soweto demonstration of 10,000 school children marching peacefully to oppose Apartheid, specifically the Bantu Education Act, which created an inferior education system for Black students. 

What better way to begin our Global Search for Justice - Dismantling Racism class than carring that powerful first-hand account with us en-route to the Apartheid Museum.  Who would have ever dreamed we would meet the woman in this iconic photo that came to globally represent both the horrors of and young people's resistance to Apartheid. Amazing.

Due to our flight delays we were only able to spent an hour and a half in the Aparteid Museum.  We made the most of it. We encourage you to google it to get the full effect.  It was thorough, sobering, sad and empowering to experience the people and action that created, resisted and eventually overcame Apartheid. They did a marvelous job of using a variety of teaching methods- photography, video, simulated solitary confinement cells, hundreds of nooses hanging from the ceiling, newspaper articles, artifacts and testimonials. All powerful, moving and extremely informative.

We came back and talked about our travel fiasco and reactions to Antoinette and the museum. All came away with a deeper understanding of the realities of those lives impacted by man's ability to catagorize, dehumanize and kill based solely on the social construction of race. Comparisons to all that's happening in Minneapolis and the U.S. Regarding the police and Black Lives Matter were not lost on us.

We appreciated our dinner of rice, veggies, chicken and bread pudding with custard sauce.  Some of us visited with Milifi over dinner who was an activist during Apartheid beginning at age twelve.  We talked about South African politics, his lived experience and the youth that give him hope. So much more to say about his wisdom and life.  He had questions for us as well - some related to Donald Trump -a reminder of how small our world really is. He also stressed the significance of travel in building relationships, challenging stereotypes and creating more peaceful world. He applauded our students for their participation in this course.

After a good night's sleep we were all better rested and ready for our 6:30 am departure to the airport. We enjoyed shopping, eating and appreciated more deeply an on- time departure. South African airlines still serves hot meals and a generous selection of beverages on every flight.  We enjoyed the options and made sure none of the delicious tiramisu went to waste.

We made it to Windhoek, Namibia - our temporary home - in good spirits and in time for lunch. Trust that no one will go hungry on this journey. We so appreciate the wonderful CGEE staff - drivers, cooks, coordinators who, now that we have finally arrived, have made sure to attend to every detail.

After lunch we met everyone at CGEE more formally and received a full orientation from Linda including course objectives, our incredible itinerary, as well as health and safety tips.  After that we jumped back in the vans for tours of the city including a helpful history lesson of German colonization and South African rule of Namibia until they won their independence in 1990.  We saw hilltop views of the city, the parliament, the president's house and office, monuments to those that died trying to resist relocation and, where many ended up as a result of housing segragation - an area called Katatura which loosely translates to "a place where we will never settle".  In addition to this government-sanctioned housing, we saw miles and miles of newer tin shacks made of correlated steel - maybe 6 by 8 feet where black Namibians from rural areas are moving to have a better chance, for employment.  The poverty and sub-standard living conditions - another reality check. 

We're impressed with the students' dedication to learning including taking their assignments seriously. Many are feeling the impact of a severe change in climate from Minnesota - temps in the 90's and a drier air that requires a conscious commitment to hydration.  Please know we are all being "our sisters' keepers" in true St. Kate's form, to take good care of each other.  

Thanks for reading and parents, thanks for entrusting your daughters with us on this incredible experience.  It's been great getting to know them and being fellow travelers on this life-changing adventure.

Past our bedtime.  Stay warm,

Donna and Martha

In Johannesburg (finally)

A lot has happened since our last posting!

United Airlines made a huge error and did not actually get us booked on the Amsterdam and then Johannesburg flights (seeing a theme here?). Therefore we spent many more hours in the DC airport while they re-routed us again.  We ended splitting up into two groups, one headed to Frankfurt and the other to London. (With the London crew split in two again).  

Donna and I have been impressed with how well this group has done with handling all the uncertainty and delays. 

Team London had a nice lunch together and then had 6 or 8 hours to shop, sleep, and just hang.  We found shopping at Heathrow terminal 5 way too expensive - it's all Gucci, Cartier, Louis Vuitton, etc.  Alexis H. scored and found the 'Quiet Area' with recliner seats. The London crew flew on British Airways and learned what is meant by a total English breakfast. 

Team Frankfurt got to fly in business class on the first leg (hopefully Taylor R, and Jade L. - new to flying - don't think that's what flying is always like!) and then had an 11 hour layover.  Some had an authentic German meal, others chose McDonalds.  They flew Luftansa to Jo'berg. 

I'm sure there are many more stories, but we're glad to all be here! Luckily we do have time to go to the Apartheid Museum today!

Delayed but hopefully on the way!

Here's the fuller report:

All of the members of our GSJ class were excited to embark on our adventure. Everyone arrived at the airport by 10:00 as instructed. Despite incredibly long security lines, all were at the gate and ready to begin our adventure in plenty of time. Our flight got delayed several times in Minneapolis due to mechanical problems. We were supposed to leave at 12:30p.m. and took off closer to 3:30. Grateful, however as reported, that the pilot and co-pilot would now have adequate oxygen for the flight. That seemed worth the wait. Unfortunately, we missed our connecting flight to South Africa as a result.

We suspected the United customer service rep wished she would have stayed on break long enough to miss us. This was confirmed as she walked us all to her supervisor and handed us off. Found out she has worked for United for 23 years and ours was the largest group she's ever had to re-book. 

Needless to say, Pieology was happier to see the 21 of us than United.

After five hours in the DC airport (6:30-11:30p.m.), United finally got us rebooked on a Delta flight leaving tonight (Sunday) at 6:00 to Amsterdam and we arrive in Johannesburg, Monday, Jan 4th at 10:30 p.m. Not easy to rebook 21 people - especially on the same flight.

Bummer to miss our first day in Johannesburg, but the students have been great - super patient, flexible and understanding - really proud of them. Good opportunities for ice melters and community building.

United fed us and put us up in the Marriott near the airport - over $1100 so they have been generous.

Some time for us to do some reading, grading or sightseeing before we go. The Air and Space Museum has been mentioned.

Thanks for all of your well wishes. Fingers crossed and prayers appreciated. We will keep you updated as to our progress.

All part of the adventure,
Donna & Martha

Stalled Travel

We had hoped that flying to Dulles airport direct (rather than routed through Chicago) would help us avoid delays, but alas, mechanical problems led to a 3 hour delay and we missed the flight to Johannesburg.  Hours later we are still at the airport in Washington, DC waiting for United Airlines to get us re-routed to Jo'berg. Not easy to get 21 people  on a plane at the last minute. 

Everyone has been very patient and all seem to be taking it in stride.   We're amazed at how long this is taking and get hopeful with each scenario (Frankfurt, Germany and then Jo'berg; Amsterdam to Jo'berg; Atlanta, Georgia.....back to Amsterdam ...

Getting Ready to Go!

Our Global Search for Justice (GSJ) course is focused on dismantling racism. In our pursuit of understanding how to dismantle racism, we must first come to a greater understanding of what is race? what is racism? what are the roots of our conceptions of race?  The pre-travel work is all aimed at challenging misconceptions about race and introducing some history about the concept of race.  Hard to fit it all in, between the end of the fall semester and leaving on January 2nd, but well worth it.  The goal is to enter the experience of being in South Africa and Namibia with a deeper and more nuanced understanding of race and racism. 

Understanding both the individual and the systemic nature of racism is critical to dismantling it, as is grasping the concept of unearned privilege.  We will explore these concepts - individual racism, institutionalized racism, white privilege - through readings, speakers, museum exhibits, and our direct observations as we travel in South Africa and Namibia.  As a society, we need to change not only hearts and minds but systems of privilege and institutionalized racism.  Apartheid in South Africa and Namibia and the Jim Crow laws in the U.S. are extreme examples of institutionalized racism; by exploring apartheid, the resistance to apartheid, and the legacies of apartheid in depth, we will gain insights into how to move toward a future with less oppressive systems.  As is often said, "There is no justice without action" and thus our focus on what it takes to actively dismantle racism. 

We'll also have the opportunity to be in summer in January, eat different foods, see beautiful (but dry) country, and meet amazing people. As in any cross-cultural experience we will undoubtedly learn more about ourselves and our own cultures than those that we visit. 

We welcome you to follow us on our journey.
Martha Phillips and Donna Hauer, GSJ Instructors